Asters (Shevchenko Didkovskiy and Partners)

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Asters is a Kyiv-based Ukrainian law firm that was founded in 1995 as Shevchenko Didkovskiy and Partners. The firm represents multinational corporations, financial institutions, international organizations, government agencies and major Ukrainian companies operating in a variety of industries and market sectors. It supports clients all around the world.

History

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Asters was founded in October 1995 by two young lawyers who graduated from the Kyiv Institute of International Relations, Oleksiy Didkovskiy and Igor Shevchenko. From the start, the partnership established itself as a multi-practice Ukrainian law firm that could provide both national and international clients with a full range of services and expertise.
The firm operated under the name Shevchenko Didkovskiy and Partners until 2008, when it underwent rebranding and changed its name to Asters.

The name Asters is derived from the Greek and Latin words for “stars” and inspired the firm's motto: “reaching the stars for our clients.”

Present day

Asters currently has 9 partners, 55 lawyers and a total staff of 100.
Asters’ Managing Partner is Oleksiy Didkovskiy. Mr. Didkovskiy focuses on M&A, Corporate law, Litigation and Arbitration, Project Finance, Securities, Insurance and Telecommunications. He has been recognized as a prominent legal expert on national and international levels, and heads the list in a number of professional and business rankings.

Asters’ Senior Partner is Armen Khachaturyan. His key areas of expertise include Banking & Finance, Project Finance, Debt Restructuring, M&A, General Corporate Advice, Currency Control, Securities, Energy, Privatization and Employment Law. Mr. Khachaturyan frequently advises on cross-border legal planning and regulatory issues related to foreign investment. He is widely recognized in international law publications as a highly experienced professional and a leading practitioner in his areas of specialization.

Community

Education

Since 2005, Asters has organized an annual scholarship competition for law students. The competition is open to undergraduate students and requires them to submit written briefs on specific issues of business law. The competition ends in a final round in which finalists have to argue before a jury panel. This experience helps law students improve their written and oral advocacy skills, build self-confidence, and develop the intellectual flexibility necessary to be successful lawyers.

The scholarship provides financial support for a six-month period. Scholars have also the option of joining the Asters team as interns and continuing their professional development as legal assistants and associates with the firm after successfully completing their internships.

Art Asters

Art Asters is a project aimed at promoting Ukrainian art through art exhibits at the Asters’ office. As a part of this project, Asters regularly sponsors more public events inviting interested individuals to celebrate the work of Ukrainian artists.

Expertise

Asters is a multidisciplinary law firm. Its core practice areas include:

  • Banking and Finance
  • Corporate and Commercial
  • Competition law and Antitrust
  • International Trade
  • Dispute Resolution
  • Environmental law
  • Mergers and acquisitions
  • Intellectual Property
  • Labour and Employment
  • Real Estate
  • Restructuring and Insolvency
  • Securities
  • Taxation
  • Telecommunications

Asters has broad experience across a variety of industries, from traditional banking and finance to [...]-edge life sciences and dynamic IT. The firm focuses on all major sectors: agriculture, automotive, power and utilities, food, IT, insurance, media and advertising, natural resources, real estate and construction, transport infrastructure and shipbuilding, and telecommunications.

Memberships and Recognitions

Asters is the exclusive Ukrainian member of the World Services Group and a long-standing member of numerous professional associations and networks, such as international and local bar associations and chambers of commerce and business associations. The firm is actively involved in the US-Ukraine Business Council, the European Business Association, the American Chamber of Commerce, and the International Chamber of Commerce. Asters attorneys are well-regarded members of the International Bar Association, the Ukrainian-American Bar Association, and the Ukrainian Bar Association.

Asters is the only Ukrainian member of Biolegis, an international network of leading independent Europe-based law firms with extensive expertise in life sciences, including biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and related areas of law. Asters is also a member of L2B Aviation, the world’s largest international network of law firms, providing legal advice to the aviation industry.

Asters and its partners consistently place at the very top of the country’s legal market in the most authoritative international and Ukrainian market reviews.

The Legal 500 EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) Asters received top law firm rankings as a result of qualitative assessment of a country’s finest legal practices, provided by the 2011 edition of The Legal 500 EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa). The firm earned the broadest range of client and peer recommendations in all five practice areas evaluated: Banking, Finance and Capital Markets, Corporate and M&A, Dispute Resolution, Intellectual Property, and Tax.

PLC WHICH LAWYER? Yearbook 2011 The latest PLC Which Lawyer? gave Asters the status of highly recommended firm in Banking and Finance and Corporate/M&A. The directory highlights Asters as a recommended law firm for Capital Markets, Competition/Antitrust, Dispute Resolution, Labor and Employee benefits and Corporate Real Estate. The Firm is also recognized for Private Equity/Venture Capital and Construction.

WHO'S WHO LEGAL: CIS 2011 Who's Who Legal, a reputable annual global-scale legal research service, in its Who's Who Legal: CIS 2011 Directory, gave high recommendations to Asters’ partners, featuring them as notable lawyers in a number of business law areas in Ukrainian jurisdiction.

IFLR1000 2011: The Guide to the World's Leading Financial Law Firms 2011 In the 2011 Edition of IFLR1000, Asters gained the upper hand in both of Ukraine's listings in Banking and Finance and M&A. According to this directory, Asters’ Senior Partner Armen Khachaturyan was recognized in both categories as a leading lawyer "who was technically very good, didn't waste time and was very thorough."

References

Biolegis
International Law Office
Legal Directory
The Kyiv Post: Powering Up Ukraine
The Kyiv Post: Asters: Law firms will reduce fees
Armen Khachaturyan profile in Who's Who Legal
Art Asters

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